While You Were Out
by Pandora of Ithilien
Summary: Ianto fills Jack in on what happened while he was gone... and the new status quo involving Ianto, Jack, and one other member of the team...
1. Suggestions

Disclaimer: Torchwood is not mine.

_**Prologue: Suggestions:**_ Ianto looked down into his drink, wondering how to begin.

"Something on your mind?" Jack teased.

Ianto hesitated, but he had promised to do this tonight. And he had enough troubles without dealing with the repercussions of not following through. "Actually, yes." He considered, then continued. "Do you remember that little chat we had, about three weeks before you left, about... er, the possibility of sharing?"

Jack raised an eyebrow, because he did remember.

_"You're in love with her, aren't you?" Ianto's question made Jack flinch. He turned away from watching Gwen drive away on the CCTV and looked at his lover. Ianto continued, "I'm not saying you were lying when you said you loved me, just that you love her too."_

_He relaxed a little – it wasn't an accusation then. So he nodded. "Yeah. But it's not going to go anywhere. She's got Rhys, and I'm not planning to drop you anytime soon."_

_"As if you'd see that as a requirement. After all, twin acrobats." _

_"You're saying you'd be fine with, what? Sharing?" _

_"I thought about it before we got involved." At Jack's surprised expression, Ianto smirked. "What, you thought I brought up my stopwatch on a whim? I thought things through. I always do, Jack. You should know that." _

_"Oh." Jack was damn near speechless, a rare thing for him. "So, if it came up..." _

_"If she – or someone else, but I'll admit I prefer Gwen to some stranger – gets involved with you, I'm not necessarily promising all of us at once, but I won't walk over it. Unless the other person's a real ass." _

Shaking off the memory, he frowned at Ianto. "So... I don't get it." He actually didn't.

"Gwen's talked to you, hasn't she? When Hart was here?"

"Yeah. She yelled at me about leaving, then we got talking. I asked about Rhys. She said they broke up, and that she was seeing someone... someone else." His voice slowed down as a thought struck him. He looked at Ianto, and saw a slight, somewhat mischievous smile on the other man's lips. "No. You can't be serious."

Ianto's smile widened, but then he sobered. "I am, actually. It... well, it started about two months after you left. In some ways, I guess it was you who brought us together. I mean, Owen and Tosh struggled too, all of us did, but Gwen and I... at first, we needed each other just as support, because after you left, things just kept going downhill in our lives. Then, well, it became more. I was willing to share, but... I actually want to, if it's Gwen."

Jack couldn't say anything. He'd come up with crazy plans to get to this point during the year he'd been the Master's prisoner, first to give him some hope, then – his gut twisted at the memories of those videos, of his team dying. Gwen and Ianto last, and the worst deaths, as though the Master knew... – then, it had been wishing for what might have been. When they'd reversed time, Jack had said he'd thought about his team. He'd thought of Tosh and Owen; he cared about them too. But it was Gwen and Ianto who haunted his thoughts. When he'd come back, he'd hoped that maybe he could talk them around, but his hopes had – he'd thought – come to nothing when Gwen told him she was seeing someone. But now... now, things were looking up. He looked at Ianto, considering exactly what to say.

* * *

Meanwhile, someone else was waiting, just like Ianto, for Jack's response. Gwen Cooper stared out her window, wondering what was happening. Ianto had said he thought Jack would be pleased, but she wasn't sure that he was right. And if he was... she wanted this, but a part of her said she shouldn't. It wasn't right, was it? Three people in a relationship? By normal standards, no. But they were Torchwood. When had 'normal' ever applied to them? It felt right for them, and that was all that mattered. If, of course, Jack said yes...

* * *

"So?" Ianto pressed.

"So... are you two psychic?"

"What?"

"You landed on the one thing I really want. You. Both of you. But I have to ask, how did this all happen? Just out of curiosity, you understand."

"Oh, curiosity, of course. Well, like I said, it was two months after you'd left, so four months ago. I was first to the Hub – "

"As usual."

"If you want to hear this, stop interrupting." Jack adopted a mock-penitent face, and Ianto rolled his eyes and continued. "_Anyway_, I came in first, and I'd been there for about a half-hour when..."

A/N: So, tell me what you think! Next chapter, we go back in time and start following the evolution of Ianto and Gwen's relationship.


	2. Beginnings

_**Chapter One – Beginnings:**_ Ianto was making the coffee as he always did, a job he actually enjoyed. In a life filled with aliens, a chore so mundane as making coffee was actually a comfort. The problem was, he was so used to the routine, he barely thought about it, and almost added too much coffee in. _Industrial strength coffee_... no point in making _that_ now. Jack bloody Harkness was gone, after all. And his mental voice was starting to sound too much like Owen. Scary, that.

The metal door turning open was a welcome distraction, he thought, and turned to see who was coming in. Tosh or Gwen, most likely. Tosh was always an early bird, and Gwen had been coming in earlier since she'd taken charge. It was Gwen, and she looked upset. Usually pale, she was nearly dead white, and she looked shocked. "Gwen, are you all right?" Dumb question, but it was as good a starting point as any.

"What? Oh, yeah," she said distantly. Ianto rolled his eyes.

"Gwen, you're not the best liar."

She laughed, a laugh that sounded more like a sob. "No, I guess not." He hesitated, and then put a hand on her shoulder.

"So, what is it?" he asked uncomfortably. He wasn't good at this. But he considered Gwen a friend, and he didn't like to see friends upset. She shifted uncomfortably and looked away.

"Oh, Rhys and I had a fight, no big deal."

"You two have been fighting a lot."

"Yeah, we – wait. You've noticed?"

"I have, Tosh has, even our usually oblivious Owen has. If Myfanwy were more sentient, she'd know too. You've been edgy lately, and your phone's been ringing more. And you've been less happy when you answer it."

"You really are observant."

"Comes with the territory of being a secretary."

"You're not a secretary!"

"No, not anymore. You must have run mad temporarily to make me a field agent." He grinned at her.

"I did not. You're as good in the field as any of us." Gwen's voice was firm. "Personally, I don't know why Jack – " She stopped midsentence and looked away again. "Sorry."

"No, it's fine. Just... when he left, did he say anything?"

"No, he just disappeared. I couldn't understand it."

"Neither do I. I mean, he dies for us, then comes back and just goes off!" Ianto shook his head. "Here I was trying to make you feel better and distract myself, and we've both turned out more depressed than when we started!"

"Well, at least it's about something different. For me anyway. For you..."

"No, unfortunately." The door opened again to admit Tosh.

"Morning, Gwen, Ianto," she said absently as she turned on her computers. Despite their rather low moods, Gwen and Ianto couldn't help but exchange a smile. Tosh would always be their computer geek.

"'Lo, everyone," came Owen's voice as he wandered in, looking as usual as though he'd just woken up. And Owen was still Owen. It was nice to know some things were still the same. Even if everything was changed.

"Why did you get stuck with the 'secretary' job anyway?" It was a few days later, at the end of the day, and only Ianto and Gwen were there. Gwen had been thinking about their little chat. She was beginning to find she enjoyed talking with Ianto.

"What? Oh, my job title. Well, when I came from Canary Wharf – " He stopped.

"Was it bad, there?" Lisa had been horrible; she couldn't imagine an army of Cybermen – or Cyberpeople, if one was being politically correct.

"Yeah," Ianto said quietly, staring into space. He could still see it, everything destroyed. And Lisa...

"Ianto, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... well..."

"It's fine. It's been a while." He smiled sadly as a thought struck him. "You know, it's a pity you never met Lisa before... well. I think the two of you would have gotten on. But to answer your question, it was the only job available. And it was somewhat closer to home – my parents love it, thought I don't actually see them any more than I used to. It's enough for them to know I'm closer, even if they don't see me."

Gwen laughed a little. "My parents live near Ludlow. My father's into history, and he used to tell me about how the castle there used to be the home of the Prince of Wales."

"Ah, Ludlow. Some of those princes died there, like Arthur, Henry VIII's older brother."

"You like history?"

"My best class in school."

"Mine too, thanks to Dad. I always liked the Tudors – well, Elizabeth, anyway."

"She was one tough woman, I'll say that."

"I think she had to be. She was my hero when I was about ten."

"Oh, what, did you want to be Queen?"

"Well, most girls dream of being a princess, I only went one step further," she said primly. They both laughed. "In all honesty though, I did look up to her. And I still read about her; Rhys doesn't get it. He wasn't a big fan of school."

"Oh, no?"

"No. He went to uni, did all right – we met there, actually – but he hated it. Me, I enjoyed it."

"Yeah, so did I." Ianto smiled. "That's where I met Lisa. We were in the same psychology class, and we both got tapped for Torchwood right out of school."

"God."

"Well, we weren't the only ones. Ask Tosh sometime when UNIT hired her."

"I seem to be the odd one out."

"No, Owen was hired later."

"Well, that's something." Her phone rang. "Rhys?" Ianto felt himself tense. He didn't like the way she'd answered that. Just a slight change in tone, but not a good one.

"No, sorry, I'll be home in a bit, we just ran a little over." She paused, then frowned. "Are you drunk?" She closed her eyes as she realized that he was.

"I just went out with Daf, and yeah, I'm drunk. What do you care, you're never 'ere anyway."

"Rhys..."

"Y'know, I don't give a damn if you come 'ome or not." His voice was so slurred it almost seemed to carry the stench of the booze, even though she knew smell didn't come through phones. Well, not Earth phones at any rate. She couldn't speak for alien ones.

"Rhys, just calm down, we'll talk when I get home, alright? Bye." And she hung up before he could say anything. She saw Ianto was watching her. "What?"

"Should you go home? I couldn't hear the words, but his tone sounded nasty. And you said he was drunk. It just seems to be a bad idea."

"Oh, I'll be fine. He's... well, he's been drinking more, it's nothing. Good night, Ianto." And she grabbed her coat and walked out. Ianto watched her, shaking his head. If Jack had been here, he'd have stopped her, and Ianto felt he should, but he knew she wouldn't listen to him. He just hoped he was wrong, or that whatever went wrong at Gwen's flat didn't go _too_ wrong.

A/N: So, what do you think? The thing about this fic is that a good bit of it is going to be Gwen/Ianto. Depending on how I play with the basic format I've got set for this, there may be more Jack/Gwen/Ianto spread through the story. I don't know yet. If not, it'll all be at the end.


	3. Confrontations

_**Chapter 2 – Confrontations:**_ "OK, Ianto, you're starting to worry me." Jack gave Ianto a sharp look. "What the hell happened that night?"

"It wasn't that bad... Just let me tell it."

"Fine. Just one thing; am I going to want to go after Rhys for this?"

"Let me tell it."

Gwen drove home, her stomach in knots. Rhys had never been this drunk and this angry at once before. But she hadn't wanted to tell that to Ianto. He'd seemed worried about her. That was nice, someone worrying about her. She'd been sleeping with Owen, and he'd never troubled himself about her. Jack... Jack told her to hold on to her life, not mentioning how damned hard that was. She and Tosh weren't that close, if she were being honest; not close enough to discuss this kind of thing. But she and Ianto... strange. She'd never felt any closer to him than to Tosh. Yet he was easier to talk to. Maybe because he was more perceptive. He and Tosh were the quiet ones, but while Tosh focused on her beloved computers, Ianto learned the little quirks each member of the team had. That went beyond knowing how they took their coffee. She was willing to bet he knew more about them than anyone had ever suspected. But she was thinking about it now.

She realized she was smiling and shook her head. But the second she realized her mood had changed, it reverted back to a bad one. She really, really didn't want to go home tonight. But what was she going to do? Stay at the Hub? She'd already gotten Jack's job; she didn't need to start picking up his habits.

She reached her flat and got out, walking slowly to the door. When had it gotten so bad? When had the Hub begun to feel more like home than her flat did? She didn't know. But it was the truth. The flat no longer felt like home, and Rhys' arms weren't the arms she craved. Where had that come from? She still loved Rhys, even though she'd betrayed him. Her affair with Owen had been about the sex and nothing else, really, though it had made them more friendly even after it ended. It had broken the ice between them, so to speak. So she didn't want Owen. Jack was gone; she wouldn't let herself want him. And... she shook her head rather than continue this train of thought.

Opening the door, she went inside, dreading what was to come. "So, came 'ome after all," Rhys slurred from the couch where he lay sprawled, his shirt off and a beer in his hand.

"Haven't you had enough to drink?"

"No. I want to be pissed."

"I think you already are."

"Oh, do you? Well, I don't, and as I'm the one drinkin' it, it's up to me, I think. You're never around anyway, what gives you the right to lecture me?"

"I'm not always out on purpose!" That was only partially true, but he didn't need to know that.

"Yeah. Sure." He took a swig of beer.

"Rhys, you've had enough!" She strode over and yanked the bottle from his hand.

"What the 'ell! You bloody bitch!" He jumped up and went for the bottle. She stepped back.

"You're going to kill yourself at this rate!"

"Well, that's my lookout! What, don't want to come 'ome to a dead body, Gwennie?"

"Don't call me that!"

"I'll call you what I like!"

"Rhys, just calm down!"

"No, no, I bloody well won't! Let's 'ave it all out now, Gwen. You don't give a damn, not really. You're too busy with your stupid job, swanning off with men in greatcoats when we're supposed to be on a date, coming 'ome at midnight, probably screwing someone behind my back too. Be honest. You don't give a shit about me except when what I do inconveniences you!"

"Rhys, that's not fair! I care about you, I don't -"

"Like 'ell you do! If you did, you'd quit that damned job and be around more! But no, you love that job. You love it more than me, that's for sure!"

She needed to deny it, but could she really do that and be honest? "Rhys... please, calm down."

"Shut up!"

"Rhys - "

"I said, _shut up_!" And – rather fast for a drunk man – his fist flashed out, connecting with her face. She was knocked to the ground, and she felt the telltale liquid sensation in her nose that heralded a nosebleed. She looked up at Rhys, whose expression had turned from rage to horror.

"Gwen, I - " He shut up when she shook her head. Saying nothing, Gwen stood, and her back ramrod straight, walked into the bedroom. Once there, she found her suitcases and began piling her clothes into them. When she came back out, carrying one and wheeling the other, Rhys paled.

"Gwen, please, I didn't mean it, I'll never do it again, I'll stop drinking, it was the booze, I swear, just please don't leave!"

"I'll be back for the rest of my things later," was all she said, and then she walked out. She went to her car and put the suitcases in the backseat, before getting behind the wheel and driving away. So this is how it ended. Six years, and it ended like this. She was sorry, but only because the end had been so bad. That it had ended... that she could not regret, though she regretted that she couldn't.

She drove without any real purpose, not really thinking about where she was headed. By instinct, she found herself back at the Millenium Centre, back at the Hub. Her nose was bleeding freely now, and she parked, tipping her head back as she groped for the pack of tissues she kept in the glove compartment. Finding them, she pulled one out and held it to her nose, waiting for the bleeding to stop.

Ianto was getting into his car when he heard another car pull in. It was late enough for this to be unusual, so he looked up. The car was Gwen's. He closed his eyes. So he'd been right after all. He walked over and saw that she had her head tipped back and a tissue pressed to her nose. There was also the beginnings of a bruise forming on her cheek. Scowling, he tapped on the window.

Gwen jumped at the tapping sound and then looked to see it was Ianto. She smiled weakly as she took the tissue from her nose – the bleeding had stopped – and rolled the window down. "Hi."

"'Hi'?! Gwen, what happened?"

"Oh, er... I've left Rhys."

"Before or after he hit you?" Ianto's voice was very dry.

"After. That was the last straw."

"And that's all you intend to do? You're not going to press charges?"

"He was drunk, really drunk, worse than I've ever seen him. I don't think he's a danger."

"Gwen, you're being stupid."

"No, I... I just want it over. God, isn't that sad? Six years with Rhys, and all I want is to put that behind me. Like it was all bad. It wasn't, I just... he doesn't get it. He doesn't get me anymore. I don't know that he ever really did."

Ianto opened the door and crouched so he was at her level, placing a hand on her shoulder both to balance himself and comfort her. "Don't beat yourself up over it, all right? It's not your fault."

"But I joined Torchwood! It all started after that."

"I think it would have ended anyway, that Torchwood just sped it up."

"Maybe you're right." She sighed.

"So," Ianto said after a moment, his mind returning as always to the practical, "where are you going to go for the night?"

"D'you know, I didn't really think about it? I guess I planned to sleep in the car."

"Why not come to my place?" Realizing how that sounded, he quickly added, "I've got an extra room, in case any of my many cousins needs a place to stay for a while. Daniel was the last one to come by; he was there nearly two months."

Gwen snorted, then winced as the action sent a wave of pain through her unbroken but tender nose. She smiled at Ianto and said, "Thanks, I will."

"Good," Ianto said briskly, "so let me get in my car, and then you follow me home." Gwen nodded.

The next day, they came in together, but since they came in first, no one knew about it. However, Tosh and Owen were both suspicious of the bruising on Gwen's face and Ianto's oddly touchy mood. When Tosh saw Ianto pulling up CCTV stills of a man in bed whom she recognized as Rhys, she frowned. Ianto printed one out and slipped it into an addressed envelope with a note.

"Ianto, what are you doing?"

"What Torchwood does."

"What?"

"We take care of our own. That's what I'm doing."

"Oh." Well, that was odd. And not something she'd have expected from Ianto. Was something going on she and Owen didn't know about?

A/N: So, Rhys is out! And things move forward. I will discuss the effect of the photo later – and I have to give credit to my math teacher, who told a story in class today involving a similar picture and gave me the idea for Ianto's little message. Sorry I didn't show them at Ianto's flat; I will, but that'll be a chapter by itself, most likely.


	4. Games

_**Chapter 3 – Games:**_ Gwen was getting more and more edgy. They were taking so long. What if Jack had said he only wanted Ianto? Ianto might love her, but he loved Jack too, and if he were forced to choose... well, how could she compete with Jack? And how could she watch them together without her?

She wouldn't, that was all. She'd already written the letter, she just had to send it if it proved necessary. The Prime Minister was looking for people to staff a new branch in Belfast; she'd go if this didn't work out. But she didn't want to; Cardiff was her home, the team here was her family. But if she had to, she would.

She looked for something, anything to distract her from this bleak picture. She heard the dryer go off. That might work, for a few minutes. Grabbing the laundry basket, she began unloading. And stopped as she lifted a pair of blue cotton boxers. A smile crept over her face as a memory flashed into her mind...

* * *

Gwen had been at Ianto's for a week. She'd been looking around for a new place, but so far no luck. Her things, besides her clothes, were in a storage facility. Ianto had gone along to pick her stuff up and they'd found Rhys packing, his manner that of a hunted animal. He told Gwen he was going to Sydney, to get away from her "crazy friends." Ianto, upon hearing this, had smiled in a rather... disturbing way. Rhys had gone white, which troubled Gwen. In the car, she asked Ianto what had happened. 

"Oh, I just sent him a little message."

"Oh? And what was this message?"

"A CCTV still of him sleeping and a note saying, Don't touch her again." 

"Ianto..." but it gave her a warm feeling, to know that he'd done something to defend her. "That wasn't necessary."

"No, but it was satisfying." He quickly added, "You're my friend; I don't like seeing my friends hurt." 

So they'd left it at that. And she'd been here a week, and they'd gotten on pretty well. They'd managed to keep Tosh and Owen from realizing they were currently flatmates – even if the situation was temporary, they didn't need Owen's comments or Tosh's suspicious glances. When the woman wasn't at her computers, she was watching everyone as though she could study them in the same way she did her diagnostics. And Owen, well... that he would comment was just to be expected. 

She brushed her teeth and then shut off the faucet, turning to the door and opening it. As she stepped through the doorway, she collided with Ianto. 

They were slammed together only for an instant, but that instant seemed to stretch on forever. She was wearing her pajamas, a spaghetti-strap green cotton shirt and matching, loose pants. Ianto wore only a pair of blue boxers. Their respective outfits ensured a certain amount of skin-to-skin contact that left her feeling electrified. Quickly she pulled back, her cheeks burning and unable to meet his gaze. "Sorry, Ianto," she mumbled.

"No, it was my fault," he said quickly, backing away so she could pass him. She took the opportunity and fled back to her room. Closing the door behind her, she leaned against it, trying to slow her racing heart. This was ridiculous. She was acting like she was back in secondary school and having her first crush. Since when had she been interested in Ianto anyway? Well... OK, if she had to admit it, she'd agreed with Jack's comment about Ianto's looking nice in a suit the first time she'd met the Torchwood team, before being retconned. But that didn't mean she was _interested_... did it? No, of course not. She had simply observed that Jack's comment was accurate. Right? 

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Ianto dunked his head under the tap and turned the cold on high. He didn't think a full-fledged cold shower was required, but a cold something certainly was. It was quite a bit better than thinking about how those pajamas clung a bit in all the right... OK, that was quite far enough. He'd never thought of Gwen like that – well, that wasn't quite accurate. He'd thought about it, occasionally, partially thanks to Jack, and partially because he _was_ male, after all, and Gwen was attractive. But he didn't chase after every girl he was attracted to, and he didn't need to go chasing after Gwen. And he wouldn't.

* * *

Things were awkward between them for the rest of the day, until a short interaction between Owen and Tosh. All it was was Tosh giving Owen a coffee cup and his complimenting her - "You are brilliant, Tosh," - and her reaction. She hid it from him – not that hard; Owen wasn't the most observant of people at times like this – but both Ianto and Gwen saw it. Once neither of the two were in earshot, Gwen murmured to Ianto, "I wish she'd just say something to him."

"It's been like this for years," Ianto informed her, shaking his head. "Tosh is too shy and Owen's just blind." 

"Should we play matchmakers for them?"

"Sure, if you want footage of things you'd rather not have made public pop up on the Internet."

"But if things work out, they;d be grateful, wouldn't they?

"Maybe; I wouldn't put it past Owen to talk Tosh into doing it anyway. He recorded you kissing Carys, you know."

"He did what? Oh, I'm going to kill him." 

"Don't. It's Owen; you can't expect any better of him, Gwen." 

"That's true." 

"So, lots of cream and just a bit of sugar?" he asked, getting up from the couch where they were sitting. 

"Hmm?" 

"Your coffee. I'm making more cups."

"Oh. Yeah. Thanks." And he walked off. She scowled at his retreating back. He was so, so... frustrating! So damned distant and professional. She almost wished Jack had left a manual on how to deal with the 'teaboy' – but as he hadn't even left one on how to run Torchwood, she supposed she couldn't expect much. 

A hand came into her line of sight holding a steaming mug. "Thanks, Ianto," she said, taking a sip. Perfect, as usual.

"That's my job," he said, grinning at her. Damn if that grin didn't make her stomach flip. When had Ianto become charming? Or had he always been that way, and just kept it under wraps, unlike another Torchwood charmer she knew? 

What was he doing? Was he flirting? What had he been thinking? Oh, that he wanted to see if he could get her to blush like she had this morning. She was cute when she blushed – oh great. He really was heading towards that fall, wasn't he? Not again... he didn't need that to happen again. He had a bad track record after all; one dead and one gone off to God knew where. He did not need to fall again. But he might not be able to stop himself. 

His musings were interrupted by Gwen saying, "I guess I should be looking in the papers."

"For what?" Ianto said blankly. 

"Well, I'm going to need a new flat, aren't I?" she asked, before standing up. "But that'll keep for an hour. Right now I need to go through some of those files in the archives." She smiled brightly at him and left. That should shake him up a bit, she thought with satisfaction. Two could play this game.

A/N: R&R!


	5. Flatwarming

Disclaimer: Not mine.

_**Chapter 4 – Flatwarming:**_ She found a place about two weeks after that conversation. It was a loft, actually, maybe a bit big for one person, but she liked it. It was also closer to the Hub than her old place, which was good, considering her current duties. That was coming along too – the _team_ was coming along. At first, they'd been running around like chickens without heads – something she'd actually seen, as she had an uncle who owned a farm. Not the most enjoyable of mental images, but an accurate one. But they were getting better. If Jack ever came back, she thought, he'd be impressed at how the team was forming a cohesive unit.

Which begged the question of command. If Jack came back, would he just swan in and take over again? Didn't she want that? Well, in some ways yes, and in others no. Having Jack around was... well... OK. She'd been entranced by him from the first time she'd laid eyes on him, and with him gone, she could admit it. If she was the poetic sort, she'd say he was the flame to her moth or some such thing. The sentiment was true, if more than a little cliched. And that aside, he was better at his job than she was at his job. But did they need a leader who would just disappear at random times? A leader who kept them in the dark? But then again, didn't they need a leader who cared about them, who would risk everything for them? Who would die for them? But she could be that. The only difference would be that if she died, there was no coming back. But if it came to that, it came to that.

"Something on your mind, PC Cooper?" Owen was holding out a report. "I figured I'd get it to you before you went off on me."

"Oh, thanks, Owen," she said, taking the paper from him.

"So, Gwen, what's up with you? Mooning over the teaboy?"

"What!" she yelped. He rolled his eyes and sat on the desk, fixing her with a piercing stare. When had Owen become the interrogating sort?

"Oh, come on, I may be oblivious part of the time – well, Tosh says so, I disagree – but I know you well enough, Cooper. You've got a thing for our teaboy, and he's got one for you. Now what will you two do if our Captain comes back?"

Gwen froze. A good question, that, and one she had refused to consider. What if Jack came back? Would the... whatever-it-was brewing between her and Ianto implode? She didn't know. She couldn't compete with Jack, she knew that much. Would she have to? "Owen..." He'd been her lover, once, but they'd never talked about this kind of thing before. Finally, unable to lie because she knew he'd see it, she told the truth. "I don't know. To be honest, Owen, I don't even know where Ianto and I are headed."

"Sweetheart, you and teaboy are headed for a nice warm spot between the sheets, the only question is if you're willing to add a third party." Gwen scowled.

"Very funny, Owen."

"Oh, I'm serious, Gwennie. Dead serious."

"Hmph. And don't call me Gwennie."

"Why not?"

"Owen..."

"All right, all right." He grinned. "But still, what are you going to do?"

"Who knows? Jack may never come back, so I'm not going to worry about it."

"Sure." And Owen sauntered off. Gwen scowled at his retreating back, irritated. What did Owen know anyway? She and Ianto were just friends. OK, even she didn't believe that. But he was with Jack. When Jack was around. Oh, this was just too much to deal with. It was exactly why she wanted to move out of Ianto's. So she could stop thinking like this.

* * *

Her new flat was nice in a lot of ways... except for the walls. They'd been painted in this awful yellow-green color in nearly the entire place. She had no clue who had come up with this color scheme, but she thought they must be crazy. Or colorblind. Or both.

So she decided she needed to paint the walls new colors. Unlike the previous owner, she not only liked decent colors, she did not want her whole apartment to be one color. Unfortunately, the flat was large, and would take forever to paint. And it would take a lot of paint.

Which was why she was to be found, one slow day in the Hub, looking at sale papers, trying to find a way to get a good deal on paint.

"What are you looking at, Cooper?" Owen asked.

"Trying to find paint on sale. You should see what the last person did with the walls of my new flat." She shuddered dramatically for emphasis. "It's bloody awful."

"Isn't that flat a bit large for you to paint alone?" Ianto asked.

"Well, it'll take a while, but I'll manage."

"We could help," Tosh suggested. "If you think you need it, of course."

"Well," Gwen laughed, "I wouldn't say no."

And so, that Saturday, the Torchwood team was to be found painting the walls of Gwen Cooper's flat. Owen had grumbled about it, but he'd just been doing it out of habit. Actually, he didn't really mind it. If nothing else, it gave him a chance to observe Gwen and Ianto for more proof of his theory. But when he tried to do so while Gwen and Ianto were in a different room, Tosh noticed.

"Owen, stop spying!"

"Oh, come on, Tosh, it's all in good fun."

"You just like to harass them."

"Sure I do. But if I wasn't, they'd think something was wrong."

"Yeah, I guess so." Tosh looked down at her paint can. She seemed to want to say something, but not know how to say it.

"Tosh? Everything all right?"

"Yeah, of course. It's just... d'you, maybe want to go for a drink sometime?"

"We do that all the time."

"No, just... you and me. As friends, I mean, I don't want to make it sound like... well... I just... You know what? Never mind."

She went back to painting. Owen looked at her, stunned. Surely Tosh didn't... fancy him? Guilt flared as he thought of how he treated her. And if she did like him... God, he must have hurt her. The question now was, did he like her? Diane's face flashed into his mind. Even if he did think of Tosh like that, could he risk going through that pain again? Looking at her now, he thought maybe he could. "Tosh? I'd like that."

* * *

Meanwhile, Gwen and Ianto worked in another room, chatting casually about work, the TV show EastEnders, which they both enjoyed and tried to see whenever they could, and other, random things.

"So that's really how you got hired? By helping Jack catch Myfanwy?" Gwen said skeptically.

"Yep," Ianto said lightly. "I distracted her with chocolate."

"Chocolate."

"Yes, you've never seen me do that at the Hub?"

"No. How'd I miss that?"

"I have no idea."

"Oi, lovebirds, we're ready for the joint project of the living room now," Owen called out. Ianto and Gwen rolled their eyes and went to meet Tosh and Owen. Denying Owen's lovebird comment would only make him say it more often, after all.

They actually worked peacefully for nearly an hour when Owen said, "I'm bored."

"So what do we do about that?" Tosh asked teasingly.

"This." And he flung paint at her. Tosh shrieked and flung some back, but, unfortunately for Ianto, Tosh's aim with a paintbrush was terrible. It hit him square in the chest.

"Oh, sorry!"

"No problem, after all, you didn't start this!" And Ianto aimed for Owen, but Gwen got in the way. Next thing they knew, they were having a free-for-all paint fight that somehow turned into just a free-for-all when Owen grabbed Tosh to stop her from getting him and discovered she was ticklish. Then Ianto discovered Gwen was as well. Somehow, without either of them knowing how, Ianto wound up on top of Gwen, tickling her.

"Stop, stop!" she shrieked, thinking frantically of a way to make him stop. Then, once she had it, she did it. Fisting her hands in his hair, she pulled his face to hers and kissed him. Hard.

"Well, that's one type of flatwarming," Owen observed.

A/N: OK, this whole chapter was centered around the goal of getting them to have a paint fight. Don't ask, it came to me at work.


End file.
